Page 98 of Love at First Rep

Lucas grimaced. “Damn, I can’t take two days off from teaching in June. My supervisor would kill me. Sorry, honey.”

“Aw man, I was gonna say Hunter could go with you, but he also works at a school,” Garrett said, disappointment clear on his face, but Hunter’s brightened.

“Actually, high school sports are done by then,” Hunter said as he tucked a lock of his long blond hair behind his ear, one of his nervous habits. “I could help you out, Car.”

Carson’s mouth opened and closed like a fish, but nothing came out. He appeared to have lost the ability to speak, but who could blame him when a Thor lookalike asked to be his boyfriend, even if it was fake?

The doorbell rang, interrupting the awkward moment, and Cole opened it for a deliveryman holding way too many pizzas. Once Cole moved them to the dining room table for everyone to attack, he changed the subject.

“So are you guys gonna tell us what the hell you were up to this week?”

“Ooh, dinner and a story!” Josh shouted as he opened a box and grabbed a slice.

“We aided and abetted, and now we want details,” Elena said.

Cole leaned over to whisper something in her ear, making her smirk. Based on what he’d learned about Cole so far, Rafe didn’t want to know what he said.

Once everyone had pizza and they settled on the couches or scattered on the floor in the living room, Rafe shared a glance with Garrett. It warmed his heart that they could still hold their silent conversations like they did before his fake death.

How much do we tell them?

Garrett shrugged one shoulder. As much as we can without putting them in danger?

Rafe nodded.

They spent the next few minutes giving everyone the basic details. No mention of the CIA, no mention of the drug lord they were tracking down, no mention of who was involved. And definitely no mention of how many laws they’d broken while they got the job done.

“So you’re like a real-life Liam Neeson? When he’s playing a fictional character, I mean,” Riley said. He lowered his voice and did an impression. “I will look for you. I will find you, and I will kill you.”

“Oh, from the movie, Taken! Best dad of all time,” Josh added. Rafe was about to comment, but realized Josh was right and laughed.

“I may or may not share a particular set of skills with that character, but it’s different when it’s a team.”

“Like a team of mercenaries?” Hunter asked.

“Pretty much?”

“What action movie is most like your real life?” Cole asked.

Rafe took a minute to think. “Maybe a combination of The Avengers without their powers, the Fast and Furious team and maybe… The Expendables.”

Garrett barked out a laugh and couldn’t stop.

“And Carson is on your team, right?” Riley asked, turning to the man in question.

Carson groaned.

“Oh yeah, he’s like our Tony Stark combined with Ludacris. But less cool.”

Carson simply shrugged in agreement.

Garrett, now in control of his breathing, straightened. “I never asked. How does Carson work with you guys but still manage to come to the gym with us every day?”

“I usually work remotely, but this one was local,” Carson answered, his voice far calmer than when he worked. “I hardly travel with the team unless I have to.”

Carson remained a bit of an enigma. He had two sides, and Rafe wondered which was the real him.

Garrett leaned against Rafe’s side, his thoughtful gaze making Rafe wish he’d developed mind reading powers.